Kobia assures interns of posting to State-owned firms after glitch

A delay in sending letters of introduction to ministries and government corporations saw interns posted by the Public Service Commission rejected.

On Saturday, Public Service Cabinet Secretary Margaret Kobia admitted the glitch affected several interns but this was being addressed.

“The majority of interns are reporting to ministries and a few in State corporations. There are no State corporations that rejected interns. However, some interns reported to corporations with their posting letters while the corporations had not received PSC guidelines on how to deploy the interns,” she said.

CONTRACTS
But even as the minister sought to downplay the matter, the Sunday Nation gathered that some of the departments wanted to be allowed to directly contract the interns, bypassing the PSC in the process and they are keen on frustrating its rollout.

While some heads complained that the graduates sent to their dockets did not possess the primary degrees to learn on the job, there is also the deeply-rooted suspicion that some of them have been detailed to spy on them and subsequently report them to their bosses or investigative agencies.

“All MDAs have received guidance letters and interns continue to report with a deadline of November 1. Any recruited intern who has any reporting challenges to contact PSC for assistance,” Prof Kobia said.

Some turned them away saying they did not have physical space to accommodate them.

UNEMPLOYMENT

An unemployment crisis continues to bite, with many graduates opting for menial jobs to earn a living.

Recently, Prof Kobia revealed that 40 per cent of Kenya’s productive population, mostly the youth, do not have meaningful jobs. Announcing another intake in the Health ministry, PSC Chairman Stephen Kirogo said internship not only equips graduates with practical skills but also allows them to earn a living.

“We are looking forward to recruiting 4,000 health workers following a request from the ministry.

“Those with certificates, diplomas and even degrees will benefit as the ministry moves to address the shortage of manpower,” he said.

The PSC handles the human resource function in government, deploying staff to line ministries after employing them.

Some of those turned away had been posted to Kenya Ports Authority, Kenyatta National Hospital, Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, Kenya Bureau of Standards, Kenya Medical Research Institute, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, and the Kenya Revenue Authority.

The government recruited 3,600 graduates in a plan the PSC believes will address the problem of an ageing workforce when they are finally absorbed after one year.

PUBLIC SERVANTS

Some 3,200 public servants exit the service every year through natural attrition while 18,600 graduates applied for the slots.

Mr Kirogo disclosed that they had received 13,000 applications for the second intake that targets 4,000 recruits.

“There is an overwhelming response and I’m happy people are keen to take part in the programme,” he said on Saturday.

Recruited from all the 290 constituencies, the PSC chairman holds that the programme will in the long run cure the dominance of a few ethnic groups.

A PSC report in July on its ethnic composition tabled in Parliament indicated that five tribes – Kikuyu, Luhya, Kisii, Maasai and Embu — control 53.3 per cent of the 223 jobs.